Are Home Insurers Abandoning Communities Vulnerable to Climate Change?
Are Home Insurers Abandoning Communities Vulnerable to Climate Change?

The U.S. Department of the Treasury makes an unprecedented move to find out if home insurers are abandoning communities vulnerable to climate change Dozens of environmental and consumer groups are rallying behind the Biden administration’s plan to collect information from property insurance companies to determine…
Bay Area residents dealing with insurance coverage, flooding damages
Bay Area residents dealing with insurance coverage, flooding damages

Ben Marcus is a landlord dealing with storm-related repairs in Oakland who has run into issues finding crews available to clean up damage following the Bay Area’s recent storms. One of Marcus’s apartment units is temporarily unlivable for his tenants. He said the carpets had…
10th Circuit says COVID-19 not a basis for Aspen restaurant’s insurance claim
10th Circuit says COVID-19 not a basis for Aspen restaurant’s insurance claim

COVID-19 did not cause an Aspen restaurant to suffer income losses that entitled it to compensation from its property insurer, the federal appeals court based in Denver ruled on Tuesday. L’Hostaria, a since-closed restaurant, filed suit against The Cincinnati Insurance Company in December 2020, alleging…
Business insurance battle for Covid losses shifts to state high courts
Business insurance battle for Covid losses shifts to state high courts

Every federal appellate court to consider the question so far has ruled that commercial all-risk property insurance policies do not cover income lost due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but policyholders’ lawyers say the fight is just getting started on the battlegrounds that matter the most:…
Louisiana regulators continue allowing weak insurers to take on risky policies
Louisiana regulators continue allowing weak insurers to take on risky policies

Shaky companies welcomed in the state’s distressed market After four insurers failed in late 2021, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon put the fate of thousands of Louisiana homeowners in the hands of little-known Safepoint Insurance Co. The Florida-based firm took on 30,000 risky policies after three…
A year after the Marshall Fire, homeowners are still slowly piecing together money to rebuild
A year after the Marshall Fire, homeowners are still slowly piecing together money to rebuild

Colleen and Greg Ehrnstrom finally broke ground on the plot where their five-bedroom home once stood in Louisville earlier this month. After a year of dealing with their mortgage company, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, builders, architects, the Colorado Division of Insurance, and, of course,…
Insurance bailout fund crippled by lawsuits, claims as Louisiana policyholders wait for relief
Insurance bailout fund crippled by lawsuits, claims as Louisiana policyholders wait for relief

Debt from collapsed insurers will weigh on LIGA for years If it weren’t for a healthy savings account, Rosanna “Roshi” Mason might still be living in a cramped disaster relief trailer in her front yard with her husband and two kids. Maison Insurance Co. was…
Maryland Joins 10 State High Courts in Rejecting Coverage for COVID Losses
Maryland Joins 10 State High Courts in Rejecting Coverage for COVID Losses

The Maryland Supreme Court joined high courts in 10 other states in ruling that coronavirus did not cause a direct physical loss or damage covered by an all-risk commercial property policy. The high court on Thursday released a unanimous decision that answered a certified question…
After latest insurance reforms, what rights do policyholders have left?
After latest insurance reforms, what rights do policyholders have left?

Hemorrhaging losses, Florida’s property insurance industry has finally convinced the state Legislature to abolish practices it blames for skyrocketing premiums, carrier failures and plummeting availability of private-market coverage. But while insurers and Republican legislators say the reforms enacted last week will stabilize the private insurance…
Clock ticks on Marshall fire victims’ insurance coverage of living expenses as rebuilding gets started
Clock ticks on Marshall fire victims’ insurance coverage of living expenses as rebuilding gets started

Colorado’s insurance commissioner asks providers to extend coverage ahead of Dec. 30 anniversary Scores of homeowners who lost their houses in the Marshall fire will run out of insurance next week to cover their temporary living expenses while they rebuild, and now Colorado’s insurance commissioner…
More Homeowners Getting Dropped by Insurance Companies Due to Wildfire Risk
More Homeowners Getting Dropped by Insurance Companies Due to Wildfire Risk

Cynthia Marino and Dio Lokes are longtime neighbors in a condominium complex in Pomona. Their homeowners insurance company recently dropped them, and pointed to the hills that surround their condos, and said the fire risk is too high. Marino and Lokes said there haven’t been…
With More Homeowners Getting Dropped, Here’s What to Do if Your Property Insurance is Canceled
With More Homeowners Getting Dropped, Here’s What to Do if Your Property Insurance is Canceled

As wildfire risk and losses continue, California sees rise in insurers dropping policyholders. Catchy jingles and funny ads make insurance seem so simple. But it’s not always simple. Many Bay Area homeowners are learning firsthand that home insurance companies can suddenly drop you. Insurance companies…
Smoke Damage a Source of Friction for ‘Standing Home Survivors’
Smoke Damage a Source of Friction for ‘Standing Home Survivors’

The lingering impact of smoke and soot is complicating insurers’ efforts to resolve homeowners claims from the Marshall Fire, which destroyed 1,084 homes in Boulder County, Colorado last December. An in-depth report posted online this week by the nonprofit Boulder Reporting Lab told the story…
No return home for some Marshall Fire survivors
No return home for some Marshall Fire survivors

It has been nearly one year since the Marshall Fire destroyed more than 1,000 homes in Boulder County, but there is another group of affected homeowners. Their houses are still standing, yet they do not feel safe returning home. Some never will. On a quiet…
Most are rejected, but Sonoma County COVID business damage case continues
Most are rejected, but Sonoma County COVID business damage case continues

Petaluma-based Amy’s Kitchen is being allowed by a judge to continue to pursue Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company to payout for damages and losses as the result of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, something few other companies nationally have been able to achieve. In its lawsuit, like thousands…
Colorado wildfires are making it harder to insure homes. Could a publicly funded plan stave off an insurance crisis?
Colorado wildfires are making it harder to insure homes. Could a publicly funded plan stave off an insurance crisis?

State commissioner suggests a plan of last resort could help homeowners who can’t find policies on open market The increasing risk of wildfires in Colorado is driving insurance carriers to raise premiums on homeowners’ policies — if they decide to insure them at all —…
‘Quirky’ TCPA Coverage Ruling Is Policy Interpretation Clinic
‘Quirky’ TCPA Coverage Ruling Is Policy Interpretation Clinic

The California Supreme Court took a big step forward for policyholders when it recently found that ambiguity in a policy issued by an AIG unit could lead Yahoo to have a reasonable expectation of coverage, thus potentially triggering the insurer’s duty to defend against four…
These 8 nonprofits are making a difference: North Bay Gives Awards for 2022
These 8 nonprofits are making a difference: North Bay Gives Awards for 2022

North Bay Business Journal recognizes the following organizations for their impact on their communities in Marin, Napa, Sonoma and Solano counties. Winners of the 2022 North Bay Gives Awards will be recognized at an event in Santa Rosa on Wednesday afternoon. Community Matters What is…